KYLE XY Season Four
by jades113
Summary: Picks up the moment season three ended. What happens when Latnok gets their hands on Kyle? They know how to achieve total control... Each Chapter is like a new episode, and my summary here sucks.
1. E1: Disappearance

"What?" Amanda asked, her eyes widening, "What does it mean?"

"Grace Kingsley," Jessi whispered, dumbfounded.

"Who's Grace Kingsley?"

"Cassidy."

"Cassidy?"

Jessi rolled her eyes.

"Cassidy. I've come into the Rack with him before. English accent. He's a member of a secret organization called Latnok."

She held up her hand to display Sarah's ring, "This is their symbol. They've been trying to get Kyle to join them for awhile."

"Okay… that's weird. But what does that have to do with this Grace Kingsley?" Amanda asked, confused.

"Grace Kingsley is Cassidy's mother, and a senior member of Latnok. Apparently she's also Kyle's biological mother. That means Cassidy and Kyle are –"

"Brothers," Amanda finished, "But so what does it all mean?"

"It _means_ the man who killed Sarah and the people responsible for putting Kyle through hell, is Kyle's real family," Jessi snapped.

"Whoa. _What_?! _Cassidy_ _killed_ your mother?! And what do you mean? What have they done to Kyle?"

"Kyle," Jessi mused, biting her lip and ignoring Amanda's question, "I wonder where he is. He should be done by now."

"Done doing _what_?"

"I thought you didn't want to know his secrets until he told you himself?" Jessi scorned.

"I –" Amanda bit her lip, obviously torn. "I do want to wait. But -"

"Yeah well I –"

Jessi gasped suddenly, and her hand flew to her head.

"What is it?" Amanda asked, "What's wrong?"

"Kyle!" Jessi breathed.

"What about him?!"

"Something's wrong. He's – I've got to find him."

She stood up suddenly, and grabbed every file she could find. She returned the computer and typed something in extremely fast – too fast for the bewildered Amanda to follow.

"I'm coming with you." Amanda said, following Jessi out of the apartment.

"No you're not," she snapped.

"I can help!"

"_No_," Jessi said impatiently, "You'll just slow me down."

"Do you even know where you're going?"

"_I_ am going to check the Tragers' first. _You_ are going to go home."

"How did you even get here? You don't have a car. I do; I'll drive."

"Yes, drive. But I'm not coming with. It's faster to run. And Amanda –"

"To run?"

"Yeah. Amanda?"

"What?"

"Don't go home. Just in case Kyle's at the Tragers' for some reason."

"Then I will go home, I want to see him. Why do you think you –"

"Listen. Kyle and I are the same. I can take care of myself. Latnok already got you once; they know what you are to Kyle. He'd kill me if I let you near them again."

"What do you mean, '_they already got me once'_?"

"Prom night," Jessi answered promptly, "It may have been _your_ perfect night, but it was hell for Kyle."

They'd reached the parking lot.

"They are _dangerous,_ Amanda. You have no idea what these people are capable of. _They killed my mother_. Stay away." She took off, running into the night.

Tears filled Amanda's eyes.

"_Keep it together_," she scolded herself. It was just all so much to take in, and there were so many unanswered questions. And Kyle. Whoever he was, he loved her, and had always wanted to protect her. Her instincts had told her that, but she hadn't listened. Now all she knew that he was in danger. Serious danger, by people that had killed.

She had to help, somehow, even without knowing all the answers, even just knowing that doing so would probably put her in danger.

Kyle had saved her before, somehow, she knew. And he was always so ready to do so.

She got in her car, and began to drive towards her house.

* * *

His brother.

His brother.

Kyle's heart pounded faster and faster as shock sunk in with the meaning of Cassidy's words.

His brother.

He didn't notice his arm slowly lowering, didn't notice when Cassidy's feet neared the ground.

His brother. How could this man – this murderer, this liar – this man who had just threatened everyone Kyle loved possibly be his brother?

His _brother_!

He thought of Josh, and the special bond between them. He'd do anything to keep Josh safe, and technically Josh wasn't even related to him.

Josh and Lori. How could this man be to him what Josh and Lori were to each other?

His brother!

He didn't notice when Cassidy's feet touched the ground, when the color returned to his face, or when a satisfied grimace flashed across his face.

Cassidy had to be lying. There was no way –

Electricity, flowing through his body. Pain. He felt himself drop to the floor as his muscles spasmed. He could hardly breathe; the pain coursing through his body was excruciating.

The world swam in front of him.

Cassidy had somehow managed to hold on to the shock remote thing. He'd been unable to push it while trying to keep his throat from being crushed, but now that his blood was circulating again, he was fine.

"Kyle," he mocked, "Always the sentimental fool."

He pushed the remote again, and Kyle yelled as a fresh wave of pain ripped through his body.

Cassidy pushed it again, and more pain rippled through him over all the previous tremors.

"How," he whispered after a minute between his shallow, gasping breaths. It hurt to breathe. It hurt to talk. Everything hurt. Pain was still shooting through his body, "Could."

A gleam of cruelty flickered across Cassidy's face. He was enjoying this. He pushed the button again. And again.

Kyle was hardly aware that his body had begun to twitch uncontrollably, as if he was having another seizure. The pain was so intense he wanted to just give up, to die, anything to end it all. The pain had taken away his anger. He had no more strength to fight it.

But then Jessi and Amanda's faces simultaneously popped into his head, followed closely by the rest of the Tragers, and Decklen. If this was what Cassidy was enjoying doing to him, his own _brother_, what would he do to _them_ in revenge?

It was too much to think about. The mental and emotional pain the thought brought on added to his physical pain was proving too much for him.

He opened his eyes a slit, to see Cassidy's smirk inches from his own mask of pain.

Cassidy pushed the button again, and this fresh wave of pain brought sweet nothingness with it.

* * *

Jessi leaped onto the porch and yanked open the Tragers' front door. She couldn't hear anything happening inside, except a strange billowing sound.

Her eyes widened as she got to the kitchen, found out the source of the sound. The patio doors were smashed outwards, as if something huge had been flung through them with an amazing amount of strength. Glass littered the ground everywhere, and the pieces of the curtain lay amongst the ruin.

"Kyle?" Jessi choked, panic clutching at her chest. Obviously, something big had happened here.

And where were the rest of the Tragers?

"Nicole? Anyone?" The panic threatened to overwhelm her. The only people she cared about in the world were gone. She had no idea where they were. And Kyle – her life – was missing. She could feel that something was terribly wrong, even without the evidence in the kitchen. Adrenaline and anger pulsed through her body. She would kill them, whoever had done this. If they hurt Kyle, they would die. And she would take a sick pleasure in doing it, she knew.

But for now, she had to find Kyle, had to help him.

"Jessi?" Jessi jumped. Amanda had walked in the open door, and come into the kitchen. She gasped at the sight of the smashed door.

"I told you to _stay away_!" Jessi yelled angrily.

"I'm not going anywhere!" Amanda yelled back, a tear escaping her eyes.

"You're _crying_?! You don't even know what's going on!"

"That's why! Jessi! I _love_ Kyle; please, tell me what's going on!"

Her jaw clenched. She knew that Amanda spoke the truth; she could see in Amanda's eyes that it wasn't just puppy love she had for him. Amanda loved Kyle almost as much as Jessi did herself.

And Kyle loved Amanda.

"If you love him, then you need to stay safe for him." She answered quietly, tensely.

"I won't. I won't do anything until you tell me everything. Starting with what happened here and where Kyle is."

"I wish I knew the answers to both of those questions. But I'm sure Latnok has him, and I'm sure they've taken him somewhere new, somewhere I wouldn't find them. I'm sure they know that I'm alive now, and if they know that, then they know I'm willing to kill them all. So they'll have taken him far away."

The conviction in Jessi's voice when she'd stated that she'd be willing to kill them all took Amanda by surprise. She realized in that moment that Jessi was dangerous.

"I still want to know everything," she whispered.

"Hang on. I'm going to try and reach him."

"What?"

"Shh."

She closed her eyes, focusing on Kyle. Like when she'd known something was wrong on prom night, how she'd known how to find him. And when he'd sent her the message about the crash. Or when she'd entered his head that day in Madacorp when they'd saved each other. She focused entirely on entering his head.

She felt as if she was being hurled across time and space; she wasn't sure where she was going or how she was getting there. She'd only gotten into his head once without touching him, that day in Madacorp. Adrenaline pushed her along.

She passed through darkness, and was suddenly in the Tragers' living room. All the Tragers were there, as were Andy, Decklin, Amanda, and herself. It was early afternoon, and the sun shone into the room merrily.

Nobody was moving.

"Kyle?" she asked gingerly.

"Jessi?" he looked up from where he'd been sitting, splitting away from the Kyle in his head.

What's wrong, Jessi?" he rushed over to her, holding her arms in comfort. She loved it when he held her like that.

"What's wrong with _me_? Where are _you_?"

His brow furrowed in confusion.

"I'm not sure." He said looking around, "What happened?"

"You tell me! I just got back to the Tragers and – "

"And what? What's wrong with the Tragers?" he glanced over at the still family. Nicole was smiling lovingly at Stephen, their hands entwined on Stephens lap as they snuggled on the couch. Lori was sitting with Decklin in a similar manner on the other side of the couch, and Josh and Andy were standing, kissing behind the couch. Amanda and the duplicates of Jessi and Kyle were sitting around the computer, laughing.

"I don't know. The kitchen door was smashed, and nobody was there."

"The kitchen…" his brow furrowed again as he pondered this.

"I – I think I had a fight."

"A fight?"

"Yeah. With - Cassidy. Yes, I remember now. I got back and Cassidy was there."

"Then what happened? Kyle?"

"I – he shocked me. That electric thing they used before." His face wrinkled distastefully.

"And then," he continued thoughtfully, "Then he told me that they needed me to help them rebuild what we'd just destroyed. He said he was going to convince Latnok to spare me before, because he thought I'd saved his life – but – " His eyes widened.

"What? Kyle, what is it?"

"Jessi, I – Cassidy told me he was brother! I was about to kill him, and then -"

"_You_ were about to _kill_ Cassidy? What did he say that -"

"He threatened you. All of you." He looked around at the made up scene around them again, tenderly.

"He said if I didn't cooperate, he'd keep hurting me, and everyone that ever mattered to me, like he killed Sarah."

"And then you tried to kill him?"

"First I punched him through the kitchen. But then, yes. I don't know what came over me. I -"

"So what happened? Did you kill him?"

"No. He told me he was my brother, and the shock... I let him go. Mostly accidentally. Then he shocked me again. And again. I don't know how many times, but eventually I lost consciousness. That must be why I'm here." He gestured around him, "I still must be unconscious. You said you got back to the Tragers? I wasn't there?"

"No, you weren't, nobody was there. I don't know where the Tragers are either…"

"I think they're fine. I think they're at the Rack. I think Cassidy cloned my phone and told them to meet me there."

"Do you have any idea where they'd take you? Where you are now?"

"No. They must have used a sedative of some kind. Hopefully not the neural block they used on Amanda. But my unconscious state is probably why we were able to connect so easily. I have no idea where they'd take me, but I bet I'm not in Seattle anymore."

"Don't worry; I'll find you. I'll make them pay."

"No," he said, concern flashing across his face.

"No, Jessi. I don't want you to find me. If they've got me, they can get you. And I don't think they'd be interested in sparing you. I think they'd kill you right away, like they did Sarah."

"They wouldn't be able to kill me; they are all ordinary."

"Yes, but they have weapons like the shocking one they used on me, and they have guns. They'll kill you, Jessi. I want to you to stay, to keep the Tragers and Amanda and Decklin safe. Please."

"But who knows what they'd do to you? I can –"

"Jessi, wherever they have me, I'm sure they'll do a better job keeping me contained than they did on prom night; they saw how I escaped. And they'll use you and the Tragers to get me to do what they want." He sighed, a deep sadness filling his eyes, "And I'll have to cooperate. I have to protect you all. But Jessi, please stay. Please keep them all – and yourself – safe. Don't worry about me. If there's any way for me to escape and still keep you all safe, I'll do it, and I'll be back. I'm sure they won't kill me. They need me too much. Besides, I'll be doing what I love to do – helping people. That can't be so bad. Maybe they'll just keep me in a lab and make me invent stuff. That wouldn't be so bad."

"Except that they're making clones of you; what would they need you for then?"

"Jessi, please. Do this for me. Stay. Be safe."

"Kyle! No!" She yelled, panic and emotions exploding out of her. She angrily smacked away the tears in her eyes.

"Please, Jessi," he said softly, his sad, dejected look not leaving his face.

"Please, promise. You'll be no good to anyone dead. They've got me for now, but I'll be back. Maybe in a week, maybe in two years. I'll be back though. I need you to stay strong for the Tragers. But don't tell them what happened to me. Tell them I left for a while. To – to find Foss. Tell them I love them and that they were the best family anyone could wish for. Please, tell Amanda about me, so that she won't have to wonder her whole life, and so that she can move on. And Jessi –"

"What?" she asked hoarsely.

"I – I'll miss you." He pulled her into hug, squeezing her against his body.

"Kyle, this can't be goodbye."

"It won't be. Just 'see you'. Later."

He pulled back and stared into her eyes.

Suddenly his head moved forward, and his lips met Jessi's. They kissed passionately for a minute, until he pulled away again.

"Take care of yourself," he whispered, "And everyone else. I think you should go now. I feel like I'm going to wake up soon."

"Kyle," she sobbed.

"See you later, Jessi."

She felt herself being sucked backwards down the long tunnel, back to her own mind.

"NO!" she screamed. She couldn't leave Kyle; couldn't just give up, and let him surrender to Latnok, and to whatever sick plans they had for him. Her every instinct told her to fight. But Kyle had asked her not to, had told her to stay put and protect those he cared about. Her love for him meant that she'd have to honor his request. She'd stay.

She opened her eyes. She was back in the Tragers' living room, peering up at Amanda's anxious face.

"What happened? Are you alright?"

"_I'm _fine. Kyle's not."

"What? How do you know?"

"I just talked to him."

"What?!"

"We're sort of like wireless computers. We can get into each other's heads. It's easy when we're toughing. But since he was unconscious, it was easier to reach him, even though he's probably far away."

Amanda couldn't believe how easily she accepted the absurdities Jessi was proposing. Still, in light of everything she believed Jessi.

"He's unconscious?"

"Yes, Latnok has him."

Her heart surpassed the faster speed it had already been at.

"Calm down, it sounds like your heart is going to beat through your chest."

"What?"

"Your heart. It's racing a little much. Calm down."

"How can _you_ be so calm?! You claim you love Kyle, but you just said that he –"

"You think I'm _calm_?" Jessi asked slowly, her eyes glinting ominously, "Then you're wrong. I just have more practice dealing with crises. And don't you _ever_ question the way I feel about Kyle."

She glared at Amanda in silence for a minute.

"Kyle told me to tell you everything about him, so that you can 'move on'."

"Like hell he did! You're just saying that because you -"

"No!" Jessi snapped her voice hard, "I'm _not_ just saying that. He did, because he doesn't know how long it will be until he can come back. He might -" she cleared her throat. She definitely was _not _going to cry in front of Amanda. "He might never be back. And he wants you to be happy, to not wonder anymore so that you could move on without him."

"Never be back?" she whispered.

"Now shut up so I can tell you everything. It all started with Einstein."

* * *

"Well, I'm just worried about him. I mean, he was planning on destroying something that is obviously super important to Latnok, and then he sends us this urgent message, but never shows," Lori stated, chewing her lip.

"Well, it's Kyle," Josh answered, "I'm sure that wherever he is, he's fine and he has his reasons for not showing."

"It just really worries me that he wouldn't even text us," Nicole mused, "Maybe we should go back."

"Nicole, they're closed. We have to get back home," Stephen said, "I'm worried too, but he's probably at home already."

They drove in silence for a while.

"Is that Amanda's car on the road?" Josh asked, nodding towards the car parked on the curb in front of the Trager house.

"Yeah – why wouldn't she park in her driveway?" Lori asked, frowning.

Nicole bit her lip and exchanged a worried look with Stephen.

"It's probably nothing," she said.

They stopped the car, and quickly made their way towards the house. The front door was already open.

"Wait," Stephen said, "I don't know why the door is open. It's probably nothing, but I'm going to go in first, to check it out."

"Stephen, be careful."

He stepped through the door cautiously, wishing he had a weapon. Something was off here.

"Kyle?" he called.

"Stephen."

He jumped. Jessi had appeared in the hallway silently.

"Jessi, you scared me. Where were you? We got a text from Kyle to meet him at the rack but he never showed – did you go somewhere with him? Is he here?"

"He's not here," Jessi answered stiffly.

"Nicole, it's alright," he called through the door. The rest of the Tragers filed in.

"Jessi, what happened?" Nicole asked, "Is Kyle here?"

"No."

"Where is he? Do you know?"

"I -"

She glanced between all the Tragers, not quite meeting anyone's concerned gaze.

"Jessi. What's going on?" Stephen demanded.

She motioned for them to follow her, and walked into the kitchen.

"Whoa!" Josh exclaimed, taking in the damage. Lori and Stephen simultaneously gasped, and Nicole covered her mouth in surprise.

"What's going on? _Amanda_? What are _you_ doing here?" Josh asked, noticing her sitting at a chair at the table.

"I just told her everything about Kyle. I think she's in shock,"Jessi answered calmly.

"You _what_?" Nicole asked.

"She followed me here. Insisted on coming. I knew there was something wrong with Kyle…"

"What's wrong with Kyle? Where is he? What happened here?"

"I don't know where he is. But Cassidy cloned Kyle's cell phone and sent you that text. He was waiting for him when he came home. Apparently this mess happened when Kyle punched Cassidy, after Cassidy threatened to hurt you all. Then Cassidy shocked him with this electrocution thing, and kept electrocuting him until he eventually lost consciousness."

Nicole's hand was back over her mouth.

"How do you know all this? Where is he now?" Stephen demanded.

''I don't know where he is. But since he was unconscious, I could get into his head, wherever he is. He told me what happened. Latnok has him now, somewhere."

"Oh my God. We've got to help him."

"I'm calling the police," Stephan said, beginning to leave.

"And tell them what? That your adopted son is a science experiment and he's now been kidnapped by scientists that took him God-knows where so that they can clone him?" Jessi scorned, "Please. You know they wouldn't be any help, even if they did believe you. Which would be highly unlikely. Or if you told them that your son was kidnapped – they'd still never be able to find him. I don't know if _I'd_ be able to find him."

"Clone him?" Amanda asked from the chair, exhibiting the first signs of life since the Tragers had come in, "You never said anything about cloning him!"

"Well, that's their plan," Jessi said dismissively.

"Amanda, are you okay?" Nicole asked concernedly. She didn't answer.

"Jessi, why did you tell Amanda about Kyle?"

"Kyle asked me to."

"Well, I can't just sit around here and do nothing, while these people are doing God-knows-what to Kyle. Jessi, what's your plan? I'm going to help," Stephen announced.

"No. I don't have a plan. Kyle made me promise not to try and find him. I promised to keep you all safe."

"Well, we aren't just going to leave him!" Stephen exclaimed.

"I can't believe you'd give up so easily," Lori said condescendingly to Jessi.

"Look," Jessi answered, her tone clipped, "I _wanted_ to go after Kyle. I was fully planning on it. I don't care if I die, if it means freeing him. He made me promise to stay here and look after you. His reasoning makes sense, and if I was in his place, I'd want the same. I respect him enough to respect his wishes, and I think you should too. Live life normally for a while. He figures he won't be gone forever, but – well, he thinks he'll be back soon."

"But what? You don't think so?" Nicole asked.

"I don't trust Latnok. At all. But Kyle might be right." She averted her eyes.

"Jessi. What else aren't you telling us?"

She sighed. "I don't even know. I just got the sense that there was something Kyle was keeping from me, because he didn't want me to worry. But it was probably my imagination; you shouldn't worry either."

"How can we not worry while these maniacs have our son?" Stephen asked angrily.

"You guys mean _everything_ to Kyle," Jessi answered, "Everything. If something happened any you, he'd never forgive himself, or me either. Cassidy killed my mother; he's willing to do a lot to get what he wants. Kyle knows that. He's going to cooperate, to keep you all safe. He knows that if he missteps, they'll hurt at least one of you. I know Kyle, and I know he will do _anything_ to keep you safe. Anything." She met Amanda's gaze for a moment, "As would I. Because anything he loves that much, I do as well. So I _will_ keep you safe, and I _will not_ jeopardize your safety. Kyle can take care of himself."

"Why are you crying?" Josh asked Lori, appalled. He was holding back tears himself.

"Why do you think, bonehead? Kyle is being held against his will by murderers, and he isn't even going to try and free himself – for our sake. It's just –"

"Jessi's right," Josh answered, clearing his throat, "Kyle can take care of himself. I don't like it either, but if I was in his shoes, I'd want my wishes respected."

"This is so _wrong_," Stephen attested, "Have these people no ethics at all?"

"To them, Kyle and I aren't people; we're science experiments. Science experiments that they've lost control of."

"If that's true then what makes him so sure they'll let him go if he cooperates?"

"I don't know," Jessi answered quietly.

Tears were silently running down Nicole's face. Stephen noticed, and put his arms around her.

She pushed him away, "I just – I'm just going to bed." She rushed out of the room. Stephen looked at the room full of kids.

"Lori, you're in charge. Get everyone to bed soon. Lock your room doors tonight, guys."

He followed Nicole.

"Amanda, are you alright?" Lori asked gingerly.

"It's just – so much to take in," she whispered.

"Yeah, it's a lot. First day I knew everything, I had a hell of a time not blabbing to the world," Josh answered.

"Yeah, it's a lot. But Kyle loves you. You know that. And he's still Kyle," Lori consoled Amanda."

"But what if he never comes back? And I never get the opportunity to talk to him about it? I -"

"Whoa, Kyle's coming back," Josh answered, "Knowing him, he'll break out of there, and be back in a few days. I give him three."

Amanda and Jessi exchanged meaningful looks.

"What?" Lori asked.

"Nothing. But it'll be longer than three days, "Jessi said, and left the room.

"Never thought I'd be asking this," Josh said slowly, "But Amanda, what do you know about Kyle?"


	2. Turmoil

Kyle felt himself waking up, slowly. The first thing he was aware of was that his body ached. Every muscle was crying from exhaustion.

The events from the Tragers' house and realization that wherever he was, he was in the hands of Latnok hit him again.

His heart began to pound faster against his will. He focused, and slowed it back down, making it steady and even. He didn't open his eyes; he did nothing to alert anyone that he was waking up.

He listened carefully for anything happening around him.

He could hear the regular beeping of a machine in sync with his heart rate. He listened to the machinery and became aware of several patches attached to his face and chest, monitoring his body activity. He realized that he wasn't wearing any kind of shirt.

His bare skin could feel the cool air in the room. It was sixty-eight degrees Fahrenheit, with a humidity of 48 percent. The ideal conditions for an operating room.

Breathing. Another heartbeat. There was someone else in whatever room he was in. The person sighed, and tapped their foot a few times impatiently. Based on the pitch and the amount of air exerted by the sigh, as well as the weight behind the tap, Kyle figured that the person was a man of a slight build, probably in his thirties. The man must have been watching over him, waiting for him to show signs of consciousness.

He twitched his muscles ever so slightly, and what he felt confirmed his fear; he was strapped to a table, tightly.

Memories from prom night flooded his mind. This was déjà vu. Except this time, he knew, it would be much harder to escape. This time, Latnok wasn't testing him. They intended to keep him trapped.

These straps were tighter than the ones on prom night had been. Tighter and sturdier.

And he'd be willing to bet that they hadn't left any scalpels or other sharp objects lying around this time.

There were more straps than last time too. Like before, both wrists and both ankles were restrained. There was one around his waist, restraining his midsection like last time as well. But, instead of a strap directly under his armpits, now there was one across his chest and shoulders, encasing the tops of his arms as well. He wouldn't be able to move anything other than his head, neck, fingers, and toes. He wouldn't be able to move anything else more than a centimeter, if that.

He focused on controlling his heart rate and breathing. If either sped up, the man watching him would think that he was coming to. Kyle wanted to delay that for as long as possible.

He concentrated more; he focused on listening. He wanted to paint himself a picture of the room and what was going on in it without opening his eyes. He blocked out the sound of the machines monitoring his system.

He listened carefully, focusing more intently, tapping into his sensitive stereophonic hearing so that he knew the distance of his surroundings from himself, so he could visualize what was going on. The man was about five feet away. Kyle could hear his breathing. It was slightly irregular, as if he was just a little nervous about something. His heart wasn't racing though, so he couldn't have been too upset. He heard rustling of the man's clothing. It sounded like cotton and polyester rubbing against more cotton and polyester. And something else.

Polypropylene. A flame-resistant material. The man must have been wearing a lab coat.

A creak and slight puff of air revealed that the man was sitting in a computer-style chair.

The man sighed again, and cracked his knuckles. It sounded like the man had hands that were slightly-smaller sized than average. Kyle listened more intently, and could hear the man swallowing, blinking, and occasionally licking his lips, as if in impatient anticipation. He could hear the man run his tongue along his teeth inside his mouth, could hear the saliva moving around in his mouth, could hear several of his hairs face fly out and land on the sides of his head when the man blew them out of his face. He could tell that the man's hair was a little on the shaggy side; it must have been about four and a half inches long. It was straight. He heard a little buzz coming from what must have been an earpiece in the man's ear. Like a Bluetooth.

Kyle was curious about the rest of the room.

He focused, listening to the sounds around the man. He listened to the airflow in the room, utilizing stereophonic hearing more than he ever had before. He let his hearing travel along with the sound waves, picking up differences in how each ear heard it, revealing details about the dimensions of the room and the objects in contained.

The room seemed to be about twenty feet by twenty feet. A square. By the way the air bounced off three of the walls, Kyle was sure that they were ordinary plaster walls. The fourth wall was trickier. There was plaster, but it only a little. It seemed to be framing something – which reflected the air differently. It seemed like glass, but something was off about it.

He continued to listen, and figured out that it was glass, but the glass was coated in something strange.

Kyle thought about a little, and determined that it must have been a two-way mirror.

Kyle continued to listen to the air in the room and the way it moved to draw out the rest of the room. There were odd little holes in the wall in one corner, grouped systematically around plastic. Some sort of intercom.

Other than the machines and monitors around him, a camera in a corner near the ceiling that focused on him, the chair the man sat in, and the Kyle and the table-of-sorts he laid captive on, the room was completely empty.

He listened to the hum of electricity in the lights on the ceiling. There were a lot of lights, so the room must have been bright.

He pictured the room in his head. He knew he could blow the electricity out easily. Blow up all the lights, overload the machines monitoring him. With no one able to see him, he could probably find a way to rid himself of his straps. Maybe he would even be strong enough to break out of them himself, without any assisting tools. He was much stronger than a regular human. But Latnok had probably taken that into consideration.

Kyle's every instinct told him to resist, to fight them. Even if he couldn't break out the straps, he could make whatever Latnok had planned for him extremely difficult. They couldn't do much without electricity, or if he was making objects they were trying to use fly and fall out of their grasp.

They also wouldn't be able to do anything if Kyle tried was Jessi had done to Cassidy at the Rack. Messing with their blood vessels.

Kyle's stomach clenched. He couldn't believe that he was considering something like that for even a minute – Nicole really had been right. Kyle was changed. And he didn't like the change.

He could do it; he could resist. But Cassidy's threats echoed in his head.

_"I'm gonna hurt Jessi, until she wishes she really had died. _

_And then, just when you think it couldn't get any worse, _

_I'll hurt everybody that ever mattered to you. _

_Starting with Amanda."_

Anger coursed through Kyle's system as the scene replayed in his mind.

Raging anger, anger that made him willing to kill Cassidy again, wishing for the opportunity to be back.

But this time the anger was accompanied with an overwhelming sense of helplessness, that only made him more angry.

But the more he thought about it, the more helplessness began to win.

What could he do? Even if he escaped Latnok, even if he did get revenge on Cassidy, how could he protect the Tragers and everyone he cared about? He couldn't ask everyone to uproot their lives and go into hiding. Even if they all were willing too, Latnok would find them eventually.

Images of Jessi, Amanda, and the Tragers ran through his head. He thought of Decklin, and even Tom Foss. What would Latnok do to them if Kyle resisted?

He could try and destroy the company and get rid of everyone involved in it.

Even thinking about thinking about committing such an act made Kyle feel sick. But did he have a choice? What if there wasn't another way to keep everyone safe?

If Kyle cooperated, the first thing Latnok would do would be to force him to fix the damage he'd done; he'd have to create more of the formula. He'd have to help them restart their experiment; have to be partially responsible for robbing children of their childhood. They'd be clones, which were regular human embryos who had had Kyle's DNA infused in them, changing who they would have been naturally into exact replicas of Kyle. How could Kyle not only allow that to happen, but to become a part of it? And it wouldn't be just one child – there were tons of them Latnok were planning on growing.

They couldn't really have been planning on releasing that many versions of the same person to the world at the same age – so what were they really planning? It seemed more likely that all of those future people would be doomed to the fate Kyle barely escaped; life as some sort of advanced bio-computer.

Conflicting emotions and thoughts raged an internal war within Kyle's head and heart. What to do?

"Anything yet?"

Kyle nearly jumped as the low, ominous voice emitted from the earpiece in the man's ear.

"Negative," he answered, pushing a button on the device.

There was no response from the other party.

Kyle wanted to hear the rest of the conversation. He listened past the barriers of the walls, through the two-way mirror. Sure enough, there were people in there.

"I think he's awake." It was the man that had spoken to the man in the room.

"His heart rate and breathing say differently." It was a woman, her voice cold and calculating.

"But if you look at the image of the brain, and the EEG readings – about ten minutes ago, he showed a large increase in brain activity. As if he had just gained consciousness."

"But the neural block we gave him isn't going to dissolve for another two hours. There's no way it's dissolved already. We only injected him with it a half an hour ago."

"Well, let's run another brain scan."

A whirring above him revealed that the brain scan must have begun. It must have been an advanced machine of new technology; it wasn't a regular MRI.

He continued to listen to the sounds in the next room. He heard a sharp intake of breath.

"That's impossible. The block shouldn't even have begun dissolving for two hours."

"Yes, well, apparently it's already dissolved."

"You're saying that he somehow dissolved a neural block – on his own, with no kind of equipment at all – on _himself_ – while _unconscious_?"

"Apparently. How extraordinary. His abilities never cease to surprise us. Apparently we will have to stick to regular sedatives in the future. _They_ seem to work well on him."

Kyle's heart sped up again, and he didn't bother to try and slow it down.

They knew he was awake.

Potential decisions and emotions flared up inside him again.

He thought of the innocent children that would be robbed of life he cooperated.

He thought of the life in captivity that awaited him, no matter how long or short, if he did what Latnok wanted.

He thought of the people he cared about that would be hurt if he resisted.

Thoughts sped through his mind at incredible speed.

Doubts threatened to undermine what he had just figured out.

Either way, people would get hurt.

But his decision was made.

For now.

* * *

"Stephan. When we agreed to adopt Kyle – I wanted to take him back in, but I was so afraid of losing him again. Now it's – happening. And last time I only had a bad feeling. I thought he was with his parents. This time we know the truth -" Nicole choked a little on her last words. She cleared her throat and wiped away the tears on her face.

They were sitting on their bed, the bedroom door closed.

"I know it's not his fault – but – Stephen. I feel terrible in thinking this, but he can't keep doing this to our family." Her voice was harsh, but from restrained emotion.

"Nicole. He's part of our family. "

"I know but – _Stephen_."

He put his arms around her, drawing her closer to him, pulling her into his lap.

She broke down, and began to sob. She leaned into him, burying her head in his chest.

"I'm just – I'm just _so worried_ about him," she whispered after a minute.

"I am too, Nicole. This is why Kyle didn't tell us the truth the first time he left. To protect us. Now we know the truth, and no, it isn't better. But at least we aren't ignorant this time."

"There's still nothing we can do!" She sobbed.

"I know. It isn't fair. All we can do is wait. And hope that Kyle gets back to us soon."

"I can't handle this, Stephen. I can't handle not knowing what's happening to him. What they could be doing to him. Jessi said that Cassidy _electrocuted_ Kyle until he _lost consciousness_. If that's the kind of thing they are willing to do just to get him in there, just imagine what they could be doing to him!"

"Nicole, we have to stay optimistic, or we will kill ourselves like this. It's not fair, and we can't do anything about it, but Kyle can handle himself. He won't let them hurt him. He's able to do so much – no doubt they will be negotiating on his terms. He'll be making them deals in exchange for him staying and working with them."

"He doesn't deserve this life, Stephan. He was so pure, so innocent. So kind. This life has taught him to lie, to steal, and to break laws. But he resisted it the whole time. He still _wants_ to be pure. They were already ruining him. He was changing, Stephan. I still love him regardless, but – what if, when he comes back, he's not Kyle anymore? What if everything they do changes him so much that -"

"Nicole. It's Kyle. Through everything he'd been through with Tom Foss, with Zizzics, Medacorp and Adam Baylin, he still strives to be good. I've never known a more pure-hearted, kind person in my life. I've never met a person _half _as good as Kyle. And for now, we should just be thankful that we have Jessi. Maybe she'll be able to maintain contact with Kyle. We can check up on him occasionally."

"You have no idea how much I hate them, Stephen. How much I hate them all – Zizzics, Medacorp. And mostly Latnok. For everything they did to Kyle."

"Oh, I have an idea," Stephen responded, his voice and face simultaneously getting darker.

* * *

"Amanda," Lori started, "What is it?"

Her nervous gaze shifted between the siblings and the door Jessi had just exited.

"Amanda! We already know everything you just discovered about Kyle! Probably more! So spill!" Josh demanded, "Why did Jessi say it would be more than three days? What do you know?"

"Not much," she admitted reluctantly.

"But what _do_ you know?" Lori asked.

"Well, right when Jessi got – er – back from talking to Kyle – well, she sort of woke up – she said Kyle told her to tell me everything about him…"

"Yeah? And?" Lori demanded.

"And she said," Amanda's voice lowered to a whisper, and her eyes filled with tears again, "And she said Kyle might – might _never _be back."

"And what gives her that extremely incorrect and ignorant idea?" Josh asked indignantly after a moment of stunned silence.

"I'm sorry, this is all just so much – but I think – Kyle must have told her something. She seemed different. She was determined to do something before she – er – talked to him, but afterwards she seemed determined to do nothing. Well, more resigned, then determined. Like whatever Kyle told her, she's accepted that she can't help, and that he won't be back for a while. I guess he told her -" Her voice got higher, as if she was going to start crying.

"What?" Lori asked gently, "What did he tell her?"

Amanda sniffed, and swallowed. "Well, I guess he told her that the reason he wanted her to tell me everything about him was so that I wouldn't have any questions, so that I could make peace with it and move on. In case he never comes back to tell me himself."

Josh and Lori exchanged horrified looks, both thinking the same thing.

Kyle was usually so optimistic.

Had he already surrendered to a life at Latnok in order to protect his loved ones?

"He'll be back," Josh choked, not quite sure if he believed it himself, "It's Kyle. He can do anything. You all doubted he'd be back last time. But he did. He came back." He tried not to start crying.

Lori bit her lip, her eyes filling with tears, "Josh, I want to believe that too. But last time was different. Last time Kyle wasn't being held prisoner; he was getting answers to his past and discovering his abilities. He had the choice to come back, so he did. This time…"

Josh scrunched his nose in anger and crossed his arms. He cleared his throat.

"I don't care. He'll find a way to come back. He escaped them last time."

"Last time it was a test; they didn't want to make it impossible for him to escape. And they took Amanda to guarantee he'd find a way," she glanced over at Amanda, whose eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "Now they're using us all as a threat to _keep_ him there."

"This isn't fair!" Josh retorted.

"As long as we're in the picture, I don't think he'll try to escape."

"Why do you have to be so pessimistic, Lori? He _will_ be back. I know it. He hasn't disappointed us yet."

"Yet. Amanda," Lori said, turning to her, "Are you okay? Really?"

Amanda had begun to slip out of focus again, lost in her own thoughts.

"I don't know. Like I said, it's just so much to take in. I mean, I saw some charts on Nate's desk before, so I had ideas… but just to have it all confirmed, to know that these people are out there messing with life in the name of science… And on top of it all, the predicament Kyle is in right now – that's what's hardest to handle of all. And I just don't know how to do it. I'm so worried about Kyle. And so confused about everything."

"Well," Lori answered slowly, "We're all worried about Kyle. But Josh is right in saying that Kyle does know what he's getting himself into and he does know how to handle himself."

"Yeah," Josh cut in, "Think about it. They want Kyle's wholehearted cooperation. I'm sure they will be doing crap on _Kyle's_ terms."

"Yeah. Maybe," Lori answered, trying to be optimistic.

Amanda jumped, noticing the clock.

"I have to go!" she said suddenly, "It's so late. My mom is going to kill me… But I don't know how I _can_ go. I'm a terrible liar; I don't know how to act like nothing happened, like Kyle isn't being held prisoner somewhere," she began to panic, "I can't go!

"Well, you can't stay here forever," Josh told her, "The last thing we need is the police poking around and finding you here in this mess, and Kyle missing."

"He has a point," Lori agreed, "You need to go. Come over tomorrow if you can get out of your house. We can answer questions you no-doubt will have, and try to make each other feel better about Kyle."

Amanda seemed consoled by this idea, "But what do I say in the mean time? I can't just act normal…"

"Well, you have to," Josh informed her, "I had trouble too, but I did it. Word about Kyle _can't_ get out."

"Why not?" she asked innocently.

"_'Why not_?'?!"Josh retorted, "How would you like the whole world to know that you're a parentless freak that was made in a petri dish and grown in a tank? How would you like everyone to know that you possess amazing abilities and are the smartest person ever, by far? How would _you_ like that kind of pressure?! How would you like the entire world to sit around and wait for you do something amazing? When Jessi let some of her 'tricks' fly, everyone wanted demonstrations. Do you _really_ want that life for Kyle? Not to mention all the people that would try to get to him and use him. Terrorists and everyone evil would love to get an influence over Kyle. Look at Latnok and what they're doing now! And they are practically the only people that know about him!"

"Okay, she gets it," Lori stopped him.

Amanda seemed appropriately abashed.

"Alright," she said meekly, tears glistening in her eyes again, "No, I don't want any of that for Kyle. I'll try my best to seem normal; I'll – I'll say I'm not feeling well."

"Better," Josh answered, nodding in approval.

Amanda sighed and stood up.

"Well, goodnight then."

She left.

Josh and Lori were silent until they'd heard the front door shut behind her.

They exchanged similar looks, no doubt thinking the same thing; had informing Amanda about Kyle been a huge mistake?

* * *

Jessi was a mess.

She paced back and forth in front of Kyle's tub. His room was the most comfortable spot in the house.

But it lacked its usual comfort without him. It was like the room knew that Kyle was gone, was being maltreated. It seemed darker, more ominous. Too empty.

Adrenaline pounded through her veins with every step.

She couldn't just sit here. She couldn't honor Kyle's request.

She wanted to make Latnok pay.

Anger blurred her vision.

She wanted nothing more than to hurt Cassidy, to hurt everyone who had thought of hurting Kyle.

_Electrocuting Kyle._

Her blood boiled.

If she ever came face to face with Cassidy again, she'd kill him in a heartbeat.

Even if he was, impossibly, the brother of the boy she loved.

Half brother.

And it didn't matter.

She'd wanted to be a better person, had wanted to become someone that Kyle deserved, or at least become more worthy of him.

Kyle was the one that helped people, all the time.

He'd helped her to feel, to learn how to empathize and sympathize with people. He'd shown her that there was good in the world. He'd demonstrated how important it was to help people, always, no matter what.

Much as she wanted to, Jessi didn't know how to _begin_ to help people without Kyle.

The irony in the scenario disgusted her.

Here she was in Kyle's room, essentially living Kyle's life with Kyle's family and Kyle's friends. The fact that that had been all she'd ever really wanted made her sick. Because while she was here, living Kyle's life contentedly, Kyle was undoubtedly being tortured and inhumanely tested by the organization that had rejected her for the same treatment.

It was hard to believe that she'd wanted to be a part of Latnok at one point, that she'd wanted to be in Kyle's shoes.

Again, she yearned to be among them – but this time the yearning stemmed from an entirely different set of reasons.

Suddenly, she angrily sat down in Kyle's desk chair.

The injustice was infuriating. Being bound by her promise to Kyle meant that she couldn't leave, couldn't search for Latnok. But her every instinct was screaming at her to find him, to help him. To harm Latnok.

The feeling that something was wrong, that something bad was happening with Kyle had hit her about the same time that Kyle must have been confronting Cassidy. It hadn't left her, and she doubted it would until she was with him again.

It was a constant headache and never ceasing reminder of Kyle's predicament.

She drummed her fingers on Kyle's desk.

She closed her eyes, and thought of their last kiss, in Kyle's head.

It had been so passionate; it was as if Kyle was positive he'd never see her again. Perhaps he hadn't told her everything.

She focused on him again, trying to reconnect, to get back into his head.

Nothing.

He must have been awake, and he was too far away for her to make that connection while they were conscious.

She moaned in frustration.

She _had_ to do something.

What was the point of it all, if Latnok had Kyle now? What was the point of prom night – of leaving Sarah alone to help him – if they had him now? If she hadn't left Sarah to save Kyle from Latnok, Sarah wouldn't have been killed and the two of them would be living happily somewhere else. So what was the point of Sarah's death?

Jessi's eyes snapped open.

She couldn't let her mother die for nothing. Her mother had hated Latnok; it was the reason they'd been so willing to kill her. So by letting Latnok win, she was letting her mother's murderers win.

Sarah wouldn't have wanted Kyle in their control.

Jessi didn't want it either.

She stood up. That was it. Much as she honored Kyle and wanted to keep her promise to him –only because she'd promised him – she knew that she couldn't. She shouldn't have made a promise that was so impossible to keep.

She started towards Kyle's door.

_"Jessi, wherever they have me, I'm sure they'll do a better job keeping me contained than they did on prom night; they saw how I escaped. And they'll use you and the Tragers to get me to do what they want."_

Jessi jumped as Kyle's words rang through her head.

Kyle had wanted Jessi to stay to keep the Tragers safe. If she left to find him, would she be putting the Tragers in danger?

She thought of each one of them; after Kyle, they were the people she cared about most about in the world. She couldn't live with herself if her actions were responsible for one of their deaths. It would be like Sarah all over again. And she wouldn't be able to handle that.

She closed her eyes again, her emotions in agonizing turmoil.

She contemplated her choices.

It looked like it was going to be either Kyle or the Tragers. And Kyle would want it to be the Tragers. There was no other way. No matter what she chose, she'd be hurting someone. There was nothing to do. Latnok had won.

Jessi eye's snapped open as another idea occurred to her.

There _was_ another way.

Kyle would hate it – there was no way he'd participate in it at all, and he'd hate Jessi for doing it.

But still, it would set both Kyle and the Tragers free. Free to live their lives in peace. And though Kyle would never want to see Jessi again, he'd have Amanda.

He'd be happy.

He didn't need her anyway.

Her heart contracted in pain as she thought of Kyle, unable to meet her eye. He'd never want to see her again, and that would be the hardest part to live with.

But anything was better than this.


	3. Plans of Escape

"Kyle."

Kyle almost jumped. The male voice from behind the glass wall filled the room, much louder than he'd been expecting. It emitted from the intercom.

"Kyle, we know you are awake." Kyle heard the man already in the room exhale in disbelief.

"Uh, sir?" he was speaking into his Bluetooth, "The boy hasn't shown any signs of life yet. And you said he wouldn't wake for another two hours."

"I said he _most likely_ wouldn't," came the fainter reply, "It would seem that we were mistaken. We underestimated him. He's awake."

Kyle knew that it was time to acknowledge them. He couldn't carry out the charade any longer; they'd seen his brain activity, seen the dissolved neural block, and knew he was awake.

He opened his eyes and lifted briefly lifted his head and looked around to take in his surroundings.

Nothing came as much of a surprise; it was exactly how the room's sounds had distinguished it, and exactly how Kyle had been picturing it. A half-hearted and short-lived smirk of satisfaction flickered across Kyle's face; he'd gotten everything right, aside from the colors he couldn't have heard.

"Ah, that's better, Kyle," the voice calmly acknowledged Kyle's movement.

Kyle's face became an unreadable mask. He didn't answer, only stared stonily at the ceiling, listening to the man speak into his microphone and listening to his voice carry through the loudspeaker and around the room.

"Kyle, first of all, we'd like to apologize for the condition you find yourself in. That is, the – er – furniture you find yourself lying on, as well as the room and near isolation. Precautions, you understand. We heard about your attempt on one of our member's lives. We just want to make sure you're… stable. We want to talk to you."

The man waited for a response. Kyle did nothing to give him what he wanted.

"Right. Well, we hope you understand. We want to ensure that our members are safe around you. We understand that you were in quite a rage, and that Cassidy only barely escaped with his life. At first, we were shocked. You never seemed like the violent sort. But after we found the full extent of your treachery, we felt that these drastic measures were of vital importance.

"This was unnecessary," Kyle admitted through his teeth, "If I really wanted to hurt you, you'd be hurting right now. I don't need to touch you."

His claim was met with silence.

The man in the room with him swallowed nervously and glanced uneasily at the mirror.

"Well," the man continued after a moment, "That's only further proof that you are an extraordinary being. And being a person with such extraordinary talent means that you have responsibilities and duties. It's your responsibility to utilize your gifts to help mankind. You agree with that, don't you Kyle?"

"By helping to create clones? By allowing human life to be tampered with, to be wasted?"

"Now Kyle, you really don't understand the situation – "

"I think I understand it fine," Kyle retorted, "And I cannot help you. Besides, there are no more records of the formula for the gestation fluid."

The woman in the room with the man exhaled slowly.

"How does he know so many details?" she breathed.

"Kyle," The man spoke into the microphone, "I'm afraid you aren't really understanding the situation. We have no desire to hurt or harm any human life. We at Latnok are all about preserving and benefiting mankind. Didn't you see that when you were a part of our college branch at the UW?"

"I saw that you used brilliant college students to unknowingly rebuild Baylin's gestation tank in order to grow clones of me in. That certainly seems like it would tamper with a lot of human life. And I cannot condone that."

"Well, Kyle, it is our sincerest hope that – given time – you'll come to understand our reasoning for our decisions. A bio-computer could benefit all of humanity, could come up with cures for terminal diseases, could generate _so many_ solutions."

"By destroying a life."

"No. Let me ask you something, Kyle. While you were in the tank, did you experience any discomfort? Did you know what was going on?"

He didn't answer.

"I didn't think so. You only became aware of what you'd missed _after_ you'd exited the tank. If you would have stayed in the tank your entire life, you never would have known what you were missing. While it's true that you never would have experienced a true human life, your existence would have helped thousands of people, and you would never have had to experience any pain or loss or discomfort. It wouldn't have been the worst life."

"I would also never have experienced love, or a family. Because of you and Zzyzzycs."

"But you would never have known what you were missing. You certainly weren't complaining while you were in there. And trust me, you got lucky in the family department. Not all families are so great; family isn't all it's cracked up to be. Even if you'd been a normal kid, you probably wouldn't have had the same family experience."

"No. I'm not helping you mess with human life."

"Kyle! It would be in your best interest. Because, unfortunately – as you pointed out – you destroyed all the records of the formula and directions for making the gestational fluid. Except one."

"I thought I got them all."

"Kyle, think about it. You read the formula, didn't you?"

"Not really."

"But you looked at it, yes? While you destroyed the records of it? And we know enough about your abilities to know that since you've merely seen it, there is a record of it… in your head. So you see our dilemma. We'd love to let you go, to continue your human life. But you have the only record of the formula we need. So we _can't_ let you go, not until the formula is successfully remade."

"I'm not helping you." He inhaled deeply, trying not to let anger get the better of him. The man's voice was growing colder, more calculating and distant.

"Well, until you come around, we could use your help on some other projects as well. And, of course, we'd love to test your abilities more thoroughly and for ourselves and our records."

"Tests?"

The image of the lab rat sprang into Kyle's head. One of his deepest fears was being realized. He was going to be the lab rat. But what choice did he have?

"Yes, Kyle. Tests. We believe that testing your abilities will give us a better understanding of these bio-computers and how to control them. Until such time as you decide to cooperate whole-heartedly, don't expect any luxurious treatment. And don't expect to see the outside world."

"The only thing keeping me here, talking to you rationally," Kyle growled, "Is the Tragers. If not for them; you, this man, and the woman in the room with you would be on the ground in agony, and I'd be escaping."

The woman caught her breath.

"How does he know I'm here?" she whispered.

"I can hear you," Kyle answered her.

"You can hear me?" she asked. The man wasn't pressing the button for the microphone anymore.

"Yes. I can hear_ you_, whoever you are."

"Extraordinary," the man in the room with her breathed.

"Kyle," he said, not bothering with the microphone, "What do you mean, about the Tragers?"

"I mean that if Cassidy hadn't threatened them, I wouldn't be sitting here complacently. If you so much as _touch_ one of them, you will pay." Kyle wasn't used to making threats. It went against his nature. But he'd been through a lot, and his nature had changed. He didn't necessarily like who he was becoming, but he wasn't able to stop it. He meant what he said. If they harmed the Tragers, he would get revenge.

He'd never wanted vengeance before.

"Cassidy had no right to do that. Of course we wouldn't harm the Tragers. They are innocent people. We are committed to benefiting mankind, and they are among mankind. They are not in any danger. No one you know is in danger. You're bargaining for your freedom, not on the lives of innocent people. Cassidy's methods are a bit… extreme. But we will see to it that the Tragers are kept safe for you."

"Stay away from them!" Kyle shouted.

But if the Tragers were never in any real danger – if they weren't in any danger now – then what was keeping Kyle here, strapped to a table?

Nothing. But could he trust that what Latnok was saying was the truth?

* * *

The family was tense. Josh had silently gotten himself a meager breakfast of cereal. Lori and Stephen each drank their own cup of coffee, and didn't even bother with food. Nicole hadn't even come out of her room.

Lori jumped when her phone rang.

She glared at the name it displayed after pulling it out of her pocket.

"Ugh. Mark, again,"

"Maybe you should answer," Josh suggested acidly, "And tell him to stop calling you."

Lori wrinkled her nose in distaste, and answered.

"Mark – "

"Lori!" he interrupted, "Thank God. Listen, I know this is going to sound weird, but can I talk to Kyle?"

"He's not here."

"Oh… Do you know when he'll be back?"

"No."

"Well, listen, can you let him know that I called? I would have used your house phone, but I really just need to talk to him. Ask him to call me when he gets back in, would you please?"

"No, probably not."

Surprised, Mark didn't answer.

"Listen," Lori continued, "I really can't talk to you right now."

"Okay!" he cut in again, "Jessi. Let me talk to Jessi. Please."

"Jessi?" Lori scoffed, "No. Goodbye, Mark."

"Wait!" he interrupted again, as Lori was starting to hang up, "Lori! Are you mad at me?"

"At _you_? Why would I be mad at you?" Lori's voice barely concealed its contempt.

"That's what I'm wondering. Look, I want to be honest with you – there's something seriously wrong happening right now, and I don't know what it is. It's probably nothing but paranoia on my part, but – I just am a little worried about Kyle. Cassidy's missing and I sort of ran into Kyle last night…"

Lori sighed.

She wasn't mad at Mark. She was mad at Latnok, and mad at the fact that Mark was a part of it. But Mark's concern reminded her that he wasn't intentionally a part of what was happening to Kyle. He had no idea what was going on; if anything, maybe he _could _help.

Josh gave her a dirty look as if to say _'Why haven't you hung up?'_

"You saw Kyle last night?" she asked, suddenly urgent.

"Yeah," Mark was hesitant. Josh's expression turned to one of hesitant, suspicious curiosity.

"When? Doing what?"

"I'm not sure what time it was – it was in a warehouse. I was there – well, it doesn't matter. But I thought something seemed wrong. Kyle was – hiding in the rafters, I think. He jumped down and told me what I thought was happening was wrong. He told me I needed to trust him. He had some kind of bacteria. Lori, I don't know how much you know about all this…"

"More than you," she answered quickly, her breathing speeding up, "But not about what happens next."

"Well, so I trusted him. And eventually, we both left. But he – warned me – and I don't know, I just feel like something's not right."

"Did you see him after you both left?"

"No…"

"Come over."

Josh's demeanor turned furious.

"Now?"

"Yes. Now."

She hung up.

"Are you serious?" Josh asked angrily, "You invited him here? Now? He's a part of them, Lori!"

"No. I don't think he is. And he saw Kyle last night. "

She dialed another number on her phone.

"_Now _who are you calling? And I don't trust Mark."

"Well, I do," she retorted, and spoke into the phone after the soft 'hello', "Decklan! Come over, right away. Latnok has Kyle."

"What?" Decklan's shocked voice asked.

"Just come over. We all need to figure this out."

She hung up again.

"What are you planning on doing, Lori?" Josh asked disgustedly, "Once everyone gets here. We'll talk about it; we'll feel more depressed, we'll realize how hopeless it is. _Then what_?"

"Well, maybe we can do _something_."

"Like what?" Josh's voice rose, bordered on hysterical.

"I don't know – that's what we can figure out! Maybe it will all make sense when everyone is here and we find out what everyone knows. Maybe we can figure out where they've taken Kyle. And maybe we can – call the cops or something. Do _something_."

"You're grasping at straws. Lori, I understand not being able to just sit around and do nothing. But what _can_ we do? Even Jessi seems to have given up. Without Jessi, we can't do anything, except what Kyle wants us to do. He'll be back. He always has been. I still give him a week."

"Josh! This _isn't like before_! He's not learning from a mentor, like with Adam Baylin, before! As long as we're around, you know Kyle will do anything for us! Including following Latnok's wishes! He doesn't think he has a choice!"

Josh's eyes glistened with unshed tears. He leaned forward. He scrunched his nose and his muscles tensed in defiance. He swallowed a few times, trying to find his voice.

His mouth twitched. He turned, and fled from the room.

"Josh – " Stephan protested from the counter where he'd been observing the entire conversation with uncharacteristic quiet. He took a step, as if to go after him. He looked down, stepped back. He wouldn't know what to say in a heart-to-heart about this. He didn't know how to handle the situation himself. He'd never felt so powerless.

Lori sighed, holding back tears of her own. Her elbows found their way to the table top, and her face sank into her hands.

* * *

If Jessi found Latnok – found where they were keeping Kyle, she could kill them all. Easily. It would be difficult to contain her, and if her attack was a surprise, none of them stood a chance. She was sure she could kill quietly. She would have to kill them all; at least all the senior members. Then she and Kyle would be free to go, and Latnok would be finished forever.

She shivered involuntarily. She'd killed once before, but hadn't known better; hadn't known what she was doing or what death even was. She hadn't even understood the world then. After she did, once she'd realized what she'd done to the man, she'd experienced the worst heartache in the world. It had been even worse than watching Kyle with Amanda. And the guilt. It had been enough for her to want to end her own life. And that was before Kyle had and the Tragers had taught her compassion, had shown her what love and forgiveness were. Could she really take life from a roomful of innocent people, and live with herself afterwards?

_They are far from innocent_, she reminded herself. She shook her head, her resolve strengthening even as her stomach twisted in pain. She knew that after she was done carrying out the dark task, neither the Tragers nor Kyle would ever be able to look her in the eyes again. She'd be completely alone in the world, even worse than before. No one would ever care about her again. Including Kyle.

But Kyle would be free. So it would be worth it.

What was her life, really? She didn't have any real family that would miss her, not like the Tragers were missing Kyle. She would sort of be taking his place, and ensuring that they could never bother him again. And then she could disappear. Start over, somewhere, far away. Like Sarah had wanted to do. Kyle had kept her tethered to Seattle before, but once Kyle would have nothing to do with her, there would be no point to her sticking around. She'd make a new name for herself, make new friends, where no one knew about her unusual past. Maybe she'd even meet someone. Kyle could never be replaced in her heart, but maybe she'd meet someone who could take the pain of rejection away. Her life wouldn't be totally hopeless. If she could get past the guilt that was sure to attack her after she killed.

Even if it ruined her life, even if it drove her to suicide, it would be worth it.

She swallowed her determination solidifying. She refused to let Kyle be the martyr, and let him suffer maybe for the rest of his life. He was good; she was bad. He deserved to live, to be happy. She deserved nothing. She deserved to live in misery. She was the one who should have to suffer.

She would find Kyle. She would free him.

She would kill Latnok.

* * *

"Why should I believe you?" Kyle asked.

"Because, Kyle, as we've tried to tell you from the beginning, we only want to help people. We aren't a violent group."

"But you killed Sarah."

"What? Sarah's death was a regrettable decision of Cassidy's. We _never_ authorized it, and we can assure you that Cassidy was punished."

"How can I be certain that he won't harm the Tragers?"

"Cassidy is being…. Detained, for his violent behavior towards you. He almost killed you; he won't be seeing the light of day for a while."

"So, hypothetically – if I were to get free – are you saying that you woudn't go after the Tragers?"

"Of course not. We're not barbaric. This is between you and us."

"But you took Amanda. The night of prom."

"Yes. A test. She was never in any real danger."

"The neural block you gave her never dissolved; she could have been seriously hurt – you wouldn't call that danger?"

"Regrettable. But rest-assured, your family would be safe. However, I wouldn't count on being able to escape."

The vein thing. Expanding them. Like Jessi had done. He knew how to do it; he knew he could do it.

Why was it so hard to actually do it? These people had done nothing good for him or anyone, so why was it so hard to actually hurt them?

He couldn't condone tampering with other lives. And if he stayed here, they'd weaken his resolve until he gave in; he was sure of it. Even if it took years, they would be relentless. He had to escape. And this could be his only opportunity.


End file.
